Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky: Hungarian–Turkish cooperation has never been this strong

In connection with the discussion conducted with the minister of industry and technology, Defence Minister Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky pointed out that since 2023, the Hungarian–Turkish defence industrial cooperation has provided us with military equipment and also strengthened Hungary’s strategic position. He added that the partnership we have built supports the development of the armed forces, the rebuilding of defence industry and strengthens Hungary’s place in the security structure of the region.

The minister emphasized that the modern armored tactical vehicle Gidrán has been a substantial contribution to capability development in the Hungarian Defence Forces, as today more than 100 such vehicles are in service with the Hungarian army. The defence minister pointed out that during the Hungarian–Turkish Innovation Year 2025, we were able to strengthen the defence innovation cooperation as well. We consider the establishment of the Hungary–Türkiye Defence Innovation Working Group and the ensuing launch of cooperation among Hungarian and Turkish companies to be important results. The Defence Innovation Research Institute (VIKI) plays a central role in this process, because it functions as a lynchpin between the defence innovation areas of the two countries.

Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said that he and his counterpart, the Turkish minister of national defence had reviewed the details of their bilateral cooperation, since the military-to-military relations between our countries have significantly developed in recent years. Hungary continues to be committed to cooperation based on mutual respect and also to deepening the multilateral partnership with Türkiye. He added that our aim is to maintain and further strengthen our military cooperation, which, besides the defence industry, has recently been expanded with areas such as defence innovation and the joint and mutual participation in training programs and exercises. By way of example, he mentioned the recently completed Exercise Adaptive Hussars 25, and then thanked the Turkish partners for their active and robust participation in the exercise.

Within the framework of high-level meetings, this was the first time that the coordinative discussion named Türkiye–Hungary Joint Consultation Mechanism took place with the participation of the two countries’ foreign ministers, defence ministers, chief national security advisors and the leaders of defence industrial companies. This is a form of cooperation that Türkiye launches only with its closest partners. The discussion provides an opportunity to further strengthen our already excellent cooperation in the fields of foreign, security and defence policy as well as defence industry.

The Russo-Ukrainian War was also on the agenda of the meeting: Hungary highly appreciates Türkiye’s efforts in the interest of closing the conflict. Like Ankara, Budapest is also ready for hosting those high-level talks which may bring the parties closer to ending the war and creating peace” – this was how Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky concluded his statement.